Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified information on different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by Lo! Foods.
Taste and health never seem to go hand in hand. The Indian diet, especially snacks, is full of carbs and fat. Despite being conscious about the possible harm these snacks can cause to our health, it's hard to resist that innate temptation to grab a bite of our favorite snack for something to munch on. So, what's the other option?
Do you choose health over your favorite mathri or murukku? Or do you let go of your diet to feast on those tasty snacks? Nah, there's no need to be selective. The option is to choose Lo! Foods.
Lo! Foods brings serves your favorite snacks in a healthy avatar so that there's no longer the need to compromise between taste and health.
Lo! Foods - Company Highlights
| Startup Name | Lo! Foods |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Bangalore |
| Founder | Sudarshan Gangrade |
| Sector | FMCG |
| Founded | 2019 |
| Total Funding | $1.8 mn (March 2022) |
| Parent Organization | Bajo Foods Private Limited |
| Website | lofoods.fit |
Lo! Foods - About
Lo! Foods - Industry Details
Lo! Foods - Founder
Lo! Foods - Startup Story | How It Began?
Lo! Foods - Name And Logo
Lo! Foods - Products
Lo! Foods - Revenue Model
Lo! Foods - Funding And Investors
Lo! Foods - User Acquisition
Lo! Foods - Startup Challenges
Lo! Foods - Competitors
Lo! Foods - Growth
Lo! Foods - Future Plans
Lo! Foods - About
Lo! Foods is an FMCG startup founded in 2019, whose headquarters are situated in Bangalore. It manufactures a wide range of healthy Indian snacks. The company provides the widest range of low-carb and keto-friendly packaged foods in India. This includes namkeens, mixtures, biscuits, and desserts—many of these being the only of their kind i.e. a low carb/keto-friendly version in India. Lo! Foods also offer low-carb atta.
We have unique, technically superior formulations that have been developed after months of R&D. This makes our products the tastiest Low Carb Health products in the market. No other product comes close. Our range is also unique and Indian. Also, due to the nature of our formulations, we are also 35-40% cheaper than equivalent products in the market.
Lo! Foods - Industry Details
The healthy food and beverage sector in India is blooming and is poised to register significant growth in the years to come. In 2010, the health and wellness food market was worth INR 9,000 crore which reached to INR 10,352 crore in 2016; it continues to witness rapid growth.
Lo! Foods with its healthy range of food products want to make a positive difference in the lives of the Indian diabetic population. India currently has around 77 million diabetics, and the number is expected to cross 100 million in the next few years.
Lo! Foods - Founder
Sudarshan Gangrade
Sudarshan Gangrade is the founder of Lo! Foods. He was formerly the Head of Marketing at Ola. Sudarshan is a seasoned serial entrepreneur with vast experience in successfully running companies with expertise in growth, marketing, and analytics. An alumnus of IIT Kharagpur and IIM Bangalore, Sudarshan has been part of India’s e-commerce ecosystem right from its early days. An active sportsperson, he co-founded LeanScience—a boutique Diet and Fat Loss Consulting organization—in his most recent stint. A few years back, he quit his job and joined as a full-time volunteer in Nandan Nilekani’s team that was building the Aadhaar project. At Ola, Sudarshan helped build a viable transportation system for the Indian public.
Lo! Foods - Startup Story | How It Began?
Lo! Foods was conceived in response to the genuine concern Sudarshan had for people struggling to lose weight and be fit. Before starting Lo! Foods, Sudarshan had co-founded a boutique health and fat loss nutrition consulting firm called LeanScience. During that time, he got a chance to see up-close the struggles of people trying to lose weight and the problem of obesity in general.
Sudarshan observed that it was quite challenging for people to stop eating their favorite food and resort to bland and tasteless stuff in the name of fitness. Thus, the idea of providing consumers with a range of products that is healthy and yet tasty came to his mind and he was confident about the success of the same.
“Our thesis has been proved right. In the beta phase, we have seen our products flying off the digital shelves. Top Health platforms have joined hands with us to launch Lo! Foods. The response is really encouraging. Our repeat customer ratio already stands at 35% and we are yet to launch at a large scale” says Sudarshan.
Lo! Foods - Name And Logo
The name Lo! is a play on the words Low Carb.
The “!” (exclamation mark) in the brand name was planned from the day the idea to start Lo! Foods was conceptualized. The ! was added to the name so as to give a pleasant surprise to consumers when they pronounced it.
Lo! Foods is indeed giving a pleasant surprise to consumers through its unique range of healthy Indian snacks!
Lo! Foods - Products
Lo! Foods offers a wide range of Indian snacks which not only taste good but are good for the health too. This food startup offers a healthy variety of namkeens, desserts, and bakery products.
We are already seeing customers across the spectrum actively cutting down carb consumption by reducing intake of ingredients like sugar, maida, rice and potatoes. We want to present them with a range of options where they don’t have to compromise on taste and their love for Indian snacks.
Lo! Foods - Revenue Model
Lo! Food's products start at INR 35. The price differs depending on the product and quantity. The company makes a profit from the sales.
Lo! Foods - Funding And Investors
Lo! Foods raised seed funding worth $500k on August 22, 2019 from various angel investors. Some of the angel investors who took part in the funding round are Anuj Golecha (co-founder, Venture Catalyst), Raveen Sastry (co-founder, Myntra), Rashmi Daga (founder, Freshmenu), Sunil Chhabra (advisor and founding team member), Jumbotail, and Mitesh Shah (CFO, BookMyShow).
Before that, it had raised close to $300K in a Seed round led by Venture Catalysts on February 1, 2019. The last round that Lo! Foods saw, came from another Seed round dated April 16, 2021, with the help of which the company successfully raised $1 mn.
| Date | Stage | Amount | Investors |
|---|---|---|---|
| April 16, 2021 | Seed Round | $1 mn | - |
| August 22, 2019 | Seed Round | $500k | Anuj Golecha, Co-founder, Venture Catalyst; Rashmi Daga, Founder, Freshmenu; Raveen Sastry, Co-founder, Myntra; Mitesh Shah, CFO, BookMyShow; Sunil Chhabra, Advisor & Founding team member, Jumbotail; and Gaurav Arora, Chief Investment Officer, ASK Wealth |
| February 1, 2019 | Seed Round | $300K | Venture Catalysts |
As said by Lo! Foods owner Sudarshan Gangrade, the funds raised will be used for expanding product portfolio and scaling up the brand's distribution.
Lo! Foods - User Acquisition
Lo! Foods is not operating on a large scale yet. The company did a beta launch on its website and a very basic announcement on social media. Most of the customers the company has gained till now are purely through word of mouth publicity.
Lo! Foods is now live on Swiggy and other key e-commerce platforms. It has also tied up with the top health platforms in India to expand its customer base. In July 2019, Hyatt Place (Hyderabad) tied up with Lo! Foods to launch its low carb and keto friendly menu. This launch was executed on the Hyatt Place Hyderabad/Banjara Hills, a property of the renowned restaurant chain, Hyatt. The menu consists of Low Carb & Keto-friendly dishes, which include pastas, burgers, paninis, and desserts, which have been made with the help of Lo! Foods Atta. This specially curated menu is made available from July 10th, 2019 onwards and will include a range of all-day eating items like Paneer Kathi Roll, Grilled vegetable Panini, Carb friendly pasta, and desserts like Go Low Brownie.
Lo! Foods - Startup Challenges
Product development was the most challenging part of establishing the venture. The Lo! Foods team wanted to create healthy options while retaining the look and taste of traditional Indian snacks. It took almost 6 months of R&D and an intensive collaboration between a team of food technologists and nutritionists to come up with the right products.
Lo! Foods - Competitors
Though many companies are selling healthy snacks, Lo! Foods is differentiated from its competitors through its wide range of healthy Indian snacks. Britannia and Nilgiris are the director competitors of Lo!Foods.
There are many health-focused products available in the market. But we believe since none of the current options are catering to Indian taste palate, we are the only one in the space with one of its kind line of products - Sudarshan says emphasizing on Lo! Foods' USP.
Lo! Foods - Growth
Within a short time, Lo! Foods have been able to attract a loyal fan base. It has various tie-ups in place and caters to more than 35% of repeat customers every month.
“We are ready for our next phase of growth. FMCG products are all about Product and Distribution. We have built a great product. We are in the phase where we now need to reach a large market, very quickly”
Lo! Foods - Future Plans
Lo! Foods' mission is to reduce the incidence of diabetes and cardiac-related diseases in India by 5 million before 2023. The company plans to do this by reducing the overall consumption of carbs, an approach proven to help in weight loss and prevention of lifestyle-oriented diseases such as diabetes and high blood pressure.
FAQs
Who is the Founder of Lo! Foods?
Sudarshan Gangrade is the founder of Lo! Foods. It was founded in the year 2019.
What does Lo! Foods specialize in?
Lo! Foods sells snacks that are low in carbs and diabetes-friendly.
Is Lo! Foods an Indian Company?
Lo! Food is an Indian Company, founded in 2019.
Who is Sudarshan Gangrade?
Sudarshan Gangrade is the founder of the low carb and keto-friendly food products brand, Lo! Foods, which has been founded in 2019 and is headquartered in Bengaluru, Karnataka, India.
Source :- https://startuptalky.com/ Author :- Chayanika Goswami Date :-March 08, 2022 at 07:33AM